Stocking-form.



A. B. EASTWOOD.

STOCKING FORM APPLICATION FILED D30. 24, 1913.

Patented July 21, 1914.

ALBERT 33. EASTWOOD, OF EOGHESTEBI, NEV] YORIL,

STOCKING-FORM.

Application filed December 24, 1913.

Specification of Letters Patent.

yatented July $31, Serial No. 808,691.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, ALBERT B. EASTWOOD, acitizen of the United States, and resident of Rochester, in the countyof Monroe and State of New York, have invented certain new and usefulImprovements in Stocking- Forms, of which the following is aspecification.

This invention relates to a form upon which a dampened stocking may bestretched and dried, either in connection with the manufacture of thestocking, or in connection with subsequent laundrying or accidentalwetting. Y

it has been found desirable, for orthopedic reasons, that a stockingwhen ready for wear, be so stretched or shaped, particularly at thetoe-portion, that it will not cramp or confine the foot of the wearer orrequire any stretching by use. Accordingly, the stocking, aftermanufacture or laundrying, should have the full width and length in thefoot-portion, for which it is designed and which is necessary to permitthe foot to expand freely in a horizontal direction. It is alsodesirable, however, for the sake of neat appearance and convenience inpacking, that the stocking, after manufacture or laundrying, be ironedor folded in'a smooth and flat condition.

Tn order to preserve the proper form of a stocking when it is driedafter having been Wet, either accidentally or in the process ofmanufacturing or laundrying, a stockingform has heretofore been employedcomprising a comparatively thin and wide piece of sheet-material, suchas a wooden board, of which the forward end is shaped to approximatelythe outline or horizontal contour of the foot, while the rear part isshaped to fill the leg of the stocking so that when the stocking isdried upon this form the material isprevented from shrinking so as tobecome shorter than it should be.

While a stocking-form of this type will preserve the width and shape ofthe toe and leg of he stocking, and will cause the stocking to dry insuch a sha e that it may readily be folded or ironed at afterstretching, such forms, as heretofore employed, have not been adapted todetermine and maintain the proper length of the foot of the stockingfrom heel to toe, so that after shrinking this length may beinsufficient and the stocking may cause cramping of the wearers toes. Toobviate this disadvantage,

it has also been proposed to employ stockingforms having parts forfilling both the leg and the foot of a stocking, these parts including amember adapted or intended to fit into the heel of the stocking, so asto determine the length of the foot. Such previous devices, however,have been of complicated construction, and have not been adapted tostretch the stocking with the leg and foot extended. in straight andtransversely flattened condition.

The object of the present invention is to improve a stocking-form, ofthe type first described, in such a manner as to cause it to maintainthe length of the foot-portion as well as the width, and to this end Iuse, in addition to the flat body-portion of the stockin -fori'n, havingthe orthopedic right or left shape, a member which. may be described asa heel-filler, and which is fixed to the lower surface of thebody-member. This heel-filler is of greatest depth. at its rearextremity, so as to provide a salient projection or angle adapted to fitinto the recess of the heel-part of the stocking. The heel-filler islocated, preferably by means of adjustable connecting-devices, in aposition in which the distance of its rear extremity from thetoeextremity of the form is equal to the required length of thefoot-portion of the stocking, and accordingly, when the stocking driesupon the form it is prevented from shrinking lengthwise so as to becomeshorter than this required length. At the same time the stocking isdried and stretched with the leg and the foot laterally extended andflattened, and lying, except for the heelportion, in the same plane, sothat after stretching the stocking may be readily folded or ironed inthe desirable flat form.

In the accompanying drawings :-Figure 1 is a bottom-view of astocking-form embodying the present invention; and Fig. 2- is alongitudinal, vertical, sectional view of the same.

The invention is illustrated as embodied in a stocking-form having abody-member 5, made of thin sheet-material such as a wooden board, andcomprising a part 6 which fills the toe of the stocking, and a part 7which fills the leg. This body-member is shaped as hereinbeforedescribed, the toeend 6 having an outline which, as will be apparent,corresponds substantially to the normal outline of the foot.

The heel-filler consists of a block 8, which is provided with a tongue 9fitting in a slot in the body-member, and secured therein by a bolt 10.The heel-filler terminates, rearwardly, in an angular portion 11 adaptedto fit into the angle of the heel of a stocking, and the block is soplaced that the distance between this angle and the forward extremity ofthe body-member is such as to stretch the foot of the stocking to therequired length.

he connections between the heel-filler and the body-member are such asto permit lengthwise adjustment of the heel-filler, to adapt the formfor use with stockings having feet of various lengths but uniformwidth..- The heel-filler is somewhat narrower than the body-member, forthe purpose hereinbefore described. Accordingly, when a stocking hasbeen stretched and dried upon the form, the material of the stocking isdrawn into two parallel fiat portions, both in the leg and at thetoe-end of the stocking, while the material is bent around the lateraledges of the body-member throughout the length of the stocking. so thatafter the form has been withdrawn it may be readily ironed or foldedflat, With creases corresponding with these bends in the material. Theheel-portion of the stocking constitutes an exception to the flat formto which the other parts of the stocking have been stretched, but thisheel-portion, after the stocking has been dried on the form, maybefolded down and flattened upon the rest of the material, withoutsacrificing the useful results secured by the use of the form.

The construction of the body-part of the form of thin sheet-material notonly permits it to be manufactured in an inexpensive and simple manner,but also facilitates the folding of the stocking in the novel mannerhereinbefore described, that is, with creases at the side of thestocking, instead of in the central vertical plane. This general shapeof the body-1nember also secures acompactness of which the advantageswill be apparent, particularly where the form is to be packed and soldin quantities.

While my invention is preferably embodied in a structure in which theheelfiller is longitudinally adjustable with respect to the body, theinvention is not necessarily limited to this construction, since theheel-filler may be permanently fixed inthe position suitable length offoot.

claim 1. A stocking-form having a fiat, and comparatively wide and thinbody-member, adapted to stretch both the foot and the leg of a stockingand shaped at one end to ap'-,

proximately the outline or horizontal contour of'the foot, and aheel-filler fixed t0 the lower surface of the body-member and ofgreatest depth at its rear extremity, where it terminates in apronounced angle adapted to retain the heel of the stocking at adefinite distance from the, toe-extremity.

2. A stocking-formhavinga flat, and comparatively wide and thinbody-member, adapted to stretch both the foot and the leg of a stockingand shaped at one end to approximately the outline or horizontal contourof the foot, and'a heel-filler projecting from the lower surface of thebodymember and of increasing depth toward its rear extremity, where'itterminates in a pronounced angle, said heel-filler being adjustabletoward and from the toe-extremity of the body-member to adjust the formfor stockings having feet of different lengths.

ALBERT B. EASTWOOD.

\Vitnesses: V

D. GURNEE', ELLA M. WALKER.

for stockings of a given

